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365 Days of Tea Challenge – Day 17

This is one of the teas from Bird & Blend’s January subscription box. Being a great lover of banana, I was very excited to see this pouch!

So full disclosure, I actually had to brew this one twice… I chose a little 16-ounce teapot for the Instagram photo, and accidentally only used the amount of tea I would normally use for a 12-ounce mug. I guess I’ve been drinking out of mugs so much lately that my brain just went into “auto” mode. Doh! So, of course, it came out somewhat weak. I didn’t want to give an unfair rating, so I dumped it and made another 12-ounce mug. Tsk tsk, so wasteful!

I will say, this one is not at all what I expected given the name and description. The banana flavor is light, and there is no custard at all. To me, it almost tastes more like granola with bananas in it? I’m assuming the green tea here is at least partially roasted, as I’m getting an almost genmaicha-like grain flavor and I don’t see what else could be contributing that. The product photo does make it look like the green tea leaves are somewhat brown, which would support my theory. I’ll have to inspect the leaf when I get home later…

Anyway, it does have a nice natural banana flavor. I’m not sure I really taste the cocoa shells, maybe a little bit, but I certainly wouldn’t notice the flavor if I didn’t already know it was there. Happily, the licorice root is not at all noticeable either.

So this is an odd one for me. It’s not bad, but I wouldn’t order it. I’m okay with that though, as I already have a banana tea from B&B (Monkey Chops) that I really love!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BsvY-rFFYDk/

Bonus Tea Swap Sample Sipdown of the Day! (23)

Another Lupicia sample from Kawaii433!

This is listed as a “Lupicia Signature Tea”, and yet there are no notes for it here on Steepster. Odd. This seems to be a plain black tea with vanilla bean pieces mixed in. Simple enough, and sounds tasty.

This is a different base tea than I normally taste from Lupicia. It’s similar to a breakfast blend, with a strong and malty flavor. Very tasty, actually! I would guess that it has at least some Assam, as it has that pleasant raisiny tobacco note.

I will say, I wish there was more vanilla here. The base tea is powerful, and it overpowers any vanilla bean flavor that may be here. The closest I taste is a sweet woody note, which I often associate with bourbon vanilla.

So as a breakfast tea, this is mighty tasty. But I wouldn’t call it a vanilla tea…

Home – 6:30 PM

I got my Nina’s Paris order from Amazon! I figured I would order a variety of teas to try out, so I got one black tea, one green tea, and one rooibos. There are a ton of blends that I want to try from them, but I hope this is a good starting point. I’m so happy that all of their teas are available on Amazon in the US, for $9-10 for 50g with free shipping.

I feel like the name is half of the reason I chose this tea (it means magician, and specifically the feminine form). I find it charming for some reason, and it makes me picture a cutesy anime girl magician with a top hat and fluffy rabbit. I have no idea why, it’s a strange association for me to have… I’m not even really that into anime. :P

Anyway, this is a piña colada green tea. Coconut is not generally one of my favorite flavors, but I do enjoy it occasionally, and it’s tasty with pineapple.

This is yummy! I’m glad I have a reason to like it other than the name, heh! The coconut is definitely the stronger of the two flavors, but it’s lovely and creamy. I do taste the pineapple as well, and it’s not tart but it does have a nice refreshing and juicy pineapple flavor that complements the smoother coconut well. The base tea is extremely mild, just adding a subtle and sweet grassy note to the blend, as well as a bit of body.

I’m very happy with my green tea choice! I see myself ordering more Nina’s teas in the near future. :)

Tea Swap Sample Sipdown of the Day! (22)

So I just got an insane fantastic swap package from Kawaii433! ❤

Just in case you don’t believe me, here’s a photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/BstdvY5lbcF/

#themotherlode

It’s filled with lovely and delicious-sounding tea goodies. The only reason I even know where to begin is that I figured I’d try the three Lupicia teas she included, so that I know whether I need to order them or not. Believe it or not, there are some Lupicia teas I haven’t tried… ;)

Okay, this is straight up delicious. The strawberry here is somewhat candylike, which is something I’ve noticed in most of Lupicia’s strawberry teas (except for Tochiotome, which has a different strawberry flavoring). In fact, it reminds me of those little strawberry hard candies with the liquid center that are wrapped in a strawberry-printed cellophane. It has a nice tartness to it, and the rhubarb goes very well with it.

The strawberry is definitely the stronger of the two flavors, but I do taste the rhubarb as well. It’s a classic pairing of course, and a tasty one. The base tea doesn’t contribute much in the way of flavor aside from a slight maltiness and a hint of astringency. There is a light floral note here as well, perhaps along the lines of rose.

Yummy. I think I may need to order this one, damn it!

Sample Sipdown! (21)

This is probably one of my favorites so far from August Uncommon. They have a lot of strange combinations, but I have enjoyed a few of their offerings – like Tropic of Capricorn, Psychocandy, and Dots and Loops. I also have a few samples that I haven’t tried yet!

This one has a lovely creamsicle-like flavor. The vanilla is sweet and creamy and spot-on for vanilla ice cream or custard. The orange is perhaps a bit more of an orange zest flavor than it is orange popsicle, but it does work well with the vanilla. I’m not familiar with jatoba wood, but to me it’s quite similar to a sandalwood sort of aromatic wood note. It adds a nice touch of refinement while still melding well with the other flavors. There’s also a bit of floral here, and it’s a somewhat heady but sweet flower such as orange blossom.

The green tea base is forgettable, but I can forgive it for that as it’s still a nice enough foundation for the added flavors here without getting completely lost.

So for me, this is sort of like a refined adult creamsicle green tea. Which frankly sounds ridiculous, but there you are! :P

I’ll definitely consider ordering a packet of this one once my stash is bit more under control.

Sample Sipdown! (20)

This tea is a bit perplexing to me.

It sounds like something that would be right up my alley – a Chinese black tea base with apricot, plum, and cherry. I love all stonefruit flavors, so of course I had to try a sample of this one.

The dry leaf smells fantastic, with tart and juicy stonefruit aromas. The steeped tea also smells lovely, though less intense.

But this just doesn’t have enough flavor for me. The base tea is very muted, with a soft earthy flavor and not much else. And while I can taste the plum/apricot a bit, it’s quite light as well. If either the base tea or the flavoring were stronger here, I think I would be very happy with this tea. But with both of them being so subtle, it just ends up tasting like I underleafed it, which I most certainly did not.

Oh well! One fewer tea for me to have to restock. ;)

365 Days of Tea Challenge – Day 16

Time for another Lupicia tea! ❤

I fully admit, this one will never be my favorite, as I’m far too in love with its close siblings – Melon Oolong and Ripe Mango Oolong. But I wouldn’t say no to having all three in my cupboard… ;)

This blend has a pouchong base, similar to the mango version. I often find pouchong to be quite floral in nature, but I think the added fruit flavors in these teas temper the floral note well without eliminating it completely. I will say, this one is a bit more floral than the mango version, most likely because I find the added flavoring to be lighter here.

It has a lovely sweet and mild peach flavor that tastes very natural to me. I’m not sure I can discern the difference between white and “regular” peach, but I’m thinking white peach might be more subtle. The oolong is lovely and smooth, with a silky mouthfeel and nice creamy note.

It does have some noticeable floral notes, perhaps a tropical flower such as orchid. Thankfully, it’s a natural and fresh floral flavor, and not at all perfume-y.

Just as Lupicia’s other fruit oolongs, this one is sweet and lush with a beautiful silky texture on the tongue. I would say the peach flavor here is somewhat more subtle. Perhaps that’s because I often find stonefruit notes in greener oolong, so I associate that flavor with it and to my tongue, it tastes like a natural element of the oolong itself.

Bumping the rating a bit!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BssyWedFdJm/

Sample Sipdown! (19)

Caffeine free time! I admit, I’m a sucker for sprinkles in tea. They’re just so darn cute… My sample of this didn’t have any of the bigger star sprinkles, but it did have small pearl dragées and freeze-dried mini marshmallows!

Hm. This mostly just tastes like rooibos to me… There is a bit of cake battery flavor, but it’s very faint next to the strength of the base. The rooibos is pleasant enough with its woody, somewhat bourbon-esque flavor.

Unfortunate… I don’t dislike rooibos, but I was hoping for more cake batter here! It does say that milk and sugar are recommended, but I’m not really in the habit of making those additions.

Tea Swap Sample Sipdown of the Day! (18)

This one comes from VariaTEA!

I admit I was a bit worried at first, as both the dry leaf and the steeped tea smelled oddly floral, almost like rose?

Luckily, it doesn’t taste like rose. Thank goodness!

It’s a perfectly nice and fairly mild peppermint tea. I appreciate that they used peppermint flavoring in addition to the dry leaf because, to me, they’re two different flavor profiles. There’s a bit of a creamy element here as well, which is a nice compliment.

The only issue I have is that I can’t taste the base tea, period. I would think this is an herbal blend based on the taste alone. It’s not a huge issue, but I would definitely order the Candy Cane Rooibos from Simpson & Vail if I wanted an herbal-tasting candy cane tea, as that one is actually herbal and caffeine free.

Happy to have tried it, though. And looking at the NecessiTeas website, I will definitely need to order from them at some point because their flavors sound amazing!

Sample Sipdown! (17)

Another from my A Quarter to Tea sample order! I’ve never heard of Lemonsweet before, but after a bit of cursory Googling, I think it might be a Game of Thrones reference? (shrugs)

I like this one. The citrus flavor almost verges on floor cleaner, but it’s not quite there thankfully. I mostly taste the lemon and lemongrass, and there’s a nice sweetness to it that gives a suggestion of strawberry. It reminds me a bit of a milder lemon drop candy flavor. I don’t taste much rosemary, for which I am thankful as it’s not a favorite herb of mine. It does contribute a pleasant slight herbaceous note that verges on pine.

The base tea here has a lot of flavor. It has a vegetal, brothy nature with a hint of bitterness. I would call it cross between a Chinese gunpowder green and a Japanese sencha. It does meld well with the added citrus flavors.

I likely won’t reorder this, as it fits a similar niche to my beloved Yuzu from Lupicia. But it is a tasty and satisfying citrus green tea!